Aristo | 08 Jul 2014 4:47 p.m. PST |
Hey folks, Well, I thought I'd be getting into 15mm, however my friend and I reached something of a consensus that it'd be easier to look at 28mm. Seeing as I've mostly dropped following the products of a particular
Workshop, *ahem* and my friend still hangs onto his, 28mm would be a simpler transition and our existing models could be used interchangeably. That said, I myself am greatly interested in small-scale skirmish games. Infinity caught my attention a while ago, and the models are great (although cost an arm and a leg after converting from GBP), and I also just found out about MERCS. I'm aware that there are plenty of rules that can be played in both 15mm and 28mm, although I'm not sure of most of these lean towards larger or smaller engagements. |
chuck05 | 08 Jul 2014 5:19 p.m. PST |
Check out the rules for Infinity. You would have to come up with your own stats but that should be pretty easy. Also you can download the rules for free. |
Extra Crispy | 08 Jul 2014 5:24 p.m. PST |
5150 from Two Hour Wargames is a great game. Easy to do your own stats. Each player runs a squad or two. Works in 15 or 28 and any figs you already own. |
nvdoyle | 08 Jul 2014 5:30 p.m. PST |
Tomorrow's War may be a bit above your desired level, but it's a superb set of rules. It does 40K better than 40K. Works for 28 and 15 just fine. |
Coyotepunc and Hatshepsuut | 08 Jul 2014 5:49 p.m. PST |
The original Traveller RPG is a surprisingly good set of skirmish rules for up to about 10 models a side. Better, really, than its own skirmish supplements. |
Aristo | 08 Jul 2014 6:00 p.m. PST |
Oops, I goofed. The Infinity's store's prices are in Euros, not GBP. Not as pricey as I originally thought. Looking like a solid option after downloading the rules. I do happen to have a copy of both 5150 and Tomorrow's War, but I haven't finished reading through them. I've browsed all the scenarios in the back of the TW book and most are platoon-level, with multiple fireteams, squads, etc. How compatible is it with, say, 10 or less soldiers per side? |
Lion in the Stars | 08 Jul 2014 6:18 p.m. PST |
As much as I love the Ambush Alley engine, Tomorrow's War isn't what you're looking for. A game with 2-3 fireteams is a very small battle, really at the bottom end of what you'd want to play with TW. While it is balanced at those small levels, there's not really a whole lot of tactical depth to the old 'Contracting Trouble' scenario. Infinity is my last 28mm game, and I'm not going to give it up anytime soon. Infinity works for up to about 20 models per side (20 orders, if you want to be more precise). Any more than that and you have too many reaction shots to survive. Sure, I now have my copy of Relic Knights, and I am reading through that book to figure out the rules, but I'm leaning towards just using the RK minis as Infinity civilians. |
Ed the Two Hour Wargames guy | 08 Jul 2014 6:30 p.m. PST |
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Aristo | 08 Jul 2014 6:32 p.m. PST |
I've got 5150 Star Army. Ideally, I'd like a rulesset that allows minis to move and act independently of each other, rather than a whole squad doing one action. We want to get into the small-scale tactics rather than the 'move, measure, shoot' sequencing that I find dull about 40k. |
15mm and 28mm Fanatik | 08 Jul 2014 8:22 p.m. PST |
I haven't tried these myself, but I'm throwing them out just to give you more options of rules "other than 40K": Warzone Resurrection (Prodos) Warpath (Mantic Games) |
nvdoyle | 08 Jul 2014 8:46 p.m. PST |
Lion has the right of it. |
Privateer4hire | 08 Jul 2014 9:51 p.m. PST |
Deadzone from Mantic lets you field a few to a dozen models. Each is effectively its own unit but can be helped by leaders and comrades too. Warpath by Mantic is set in the same setting but focuses on big battles of several units each having at least 5 soldiers. If warpath is a 40k match then deadzone is closer to necromunda. |
etotheipi | 09 Jul 2014 3:35 a.m. PST |
I'll plug my game engine, Quick Intermediate Level Skirmish, which is inherently a skirmish engine first. And free. It's designed for a small number of figures on either side and plays well on (most scenario sets are built for) a 3'x3' area. It's available at Wargame Vault and the scifi modules are broken out on our website at:
inlgames.com/sell.htm#scifi You can test drive it completely for free in scifi with the rules: link and the Soylent Green: We're a People Company scenario. |
Tgunner | 09 Jul 2014 4:43 a.m. PST |
@Aristo- then look at Chain Reaction. It's THW's base rules and is compatible with their other rules. It is based around individuals acting alone or in small groups. However the most recent version is a bit different from Star Army. link |
Ed the Two Hour Wargames guy | 09 Jul 2014 7:34 a.m. PST |
I can testify that I have received a hardcopy of "Oh God Anything but a six." from Otto, so I know there's a real person behind this account, and it's not just a chatbot :-) |
Sondergaard | 09 Jul 2014 10:06 a.m. PST |
In the Emperor's Name is designed for wargames/teams/gangs of 6-12 each. Based in the 40K universe it can actually be used for anything. Free as well. iten-game.org |
ordinarybass | 09 Jul 2014 11:25 a.m. PST |
I like In The Emperor's Name. Do yourself a favor though and stick with the second edition. The third edition doesn't have warband lists yet, has unfinished weapons profiles, and various other incompletions. The 2nd edition has full warband lists, and a nice campaign system. link Blasters and Bulkheads is another one. Bigger than Mercs, but smaller than TW. In it you control maybe a couple squads of henchmen and various heroes. It still feels like a very small skirmish, but allows for lots of neat narrative options with the henchmen mechanics.
Have you considered Necromunda? It's still available for free as a PDF in various locations, and there's a nice mod of it that brings it into the wider 40k universe. link Lastly, Warengine is usually played as a platoon level game, but you can play all individuals and keep it very small. Plus it's very adaptable and customizable. Though they are free, you do have to join the yahoo group to get the rules. |
PapaSync | 09 Jul 2014 12:28 p.m. PST |
Before you spend any cash try these freebies that are pretty customizable. FUBAR Fast and dirty Forge of War WarEngine No Limits KR-16 Sulphur Crimson Dust In The Emperors name |
Feet up now | 09 Jul 2014 5:20 p.m. PST |
Just to complicate matters more try dredd from mongoose and combatzone from em4 both great squad skirmish type games that could cater for the figures you already have. |
Brother Jim | 09 Jul 2014 9:51 p.m. PST |
Warzone Resurrection rules and army lists. link The last time I checked, this does not include the Imperial faction, but that's available on their webstore (it's on a rotating banner thingamajig so may not be immediately obvious). shop.prodosgames.com/en |
Inner Sanctum | 10 Jul 2014 2:42 a.m. PST |
I hav'nt seen any plugs for Flying Lead. Here's a game you might enjoy: link link |
Capt Flash | 10 Jul 2014 5:38 a.m. PST |
I second the advice from both Ordinarybass and PapaSync. Definitely give those a try. Papasync's advice on the free sets is spot on as most of those are well done and fairly complete. Besides Warzone 1st(one of my personal favorites), I'd plug for FUBAR(helped on that one), ITEN(ditto), FAD, WarEngine, and Forge Of War as I've read or played them all and found them to be excellent. Please let us know what you decide on! -Edgar |
CzarBLood | 10 Jul 2014 10:13 a.m. PST |
Gruntz can be played at 28mm , but designed for 15mm , and is my goto game of choice , design a generic background , something your not linked to by a publisher. Infinity is great and amazingly well supported. Deadzone has a great system , and funky terrain. and as wildshot I will suggest Bombshell Games , The Battlefield , allowing you to play all the CoD/Modern Warfare/Halo games you can. |
Lion in the Stars | 11 Jul 2014 12:09 p.m. PST |
Oh, and since I apparently forgot to mention this, Infinity's core rules and army lists are free to download. I recommend the fan rules re-edit because that consolidated all the rules from Human Sphere and the core rules into one document with the new rules inserted into the appropriate places in the core rules. Sadly, it hasn't been kept up, but there are very few new rules that have been added since the last time the re-edit was updated. You only need to buy the books for the background, art, and the narrative campaign from Paradiso. But I will warn you that Infinity carries a high risk of Pokemonitis, where you gotta catch'em all! |
Aristo | 11 Jul 2014 1:53 p.m. PST |
I was really interested in Infinity, but sadly it doesn't seem like the local crowd pays much attention to it anymore and my FLGS is liquidating its stock. If my friend wanted to start it, then I would; The only thing stopping us is he's not into the models, despite the wealth of factions and figures available (yet Games Workshop and MERCS are quality enough for him, and he's dabbled in FoW…). I'll probably be starting MERCS up; he's into that at least and the store carries them. It's what I'm looking for anyhow; a small model count, skirmish game with emphasis on tactics. A fair number of the rules suggested here are bigger-scale and squads are confined to act as one entity. |